You might think that a four-time Olympic gold medallist would relish the chance to take a step back and put their feet up for a bit, but not Laura Kenny. 26 weeks into her pregnancy with husband and fellow Team GB cyclist Jason Kenny, the 25-year-old has no intention of slowing down just yet.

In an exclusive interview with NetDoctor, the country's most successful female Olympian of all time gave us her tips on all things babies, bumps and bikes.

1. Take things as they come

After tying the knot in September 2016, the couple announced in February that they were expecting their first child together. So, how is pregnancy treating her so far?

"Nothing really worries me about my pregnancy to be totally honest. I've just been taking it as it comes and haven't really thought too much about any of it. To begin with I was a bit tired, but I've had quite an easy run with it all so far. Although the last time I said this I ended up being sick in a taxi! At the time I thought it was morning sickness because it was so early but because I only had it on the one day my midwife thinks that it was just a bug that I'd caught because pregnancy can weaken your immune system."

However, it seems that even athletes fall prey to infamous pregnancy cravings…

"I was hungrier than usual to start with. It was so weird, it lasted for about a week and it got to the point where I would take food to bed with me because I'd be waking up in the middle of the night absolutely starving. There was one night when I woke up and was just craving cheese so badly at about 2am. I woke Jason up and asked him to go and get me some but we didn't have any in the house and he wouldn't go down the road to the petrol station!"

2. Small lifestyle changes can make a BIG difference

Having suffered from hay fever all her life, Laura is keen for her allergies not to interfere with her peaceful pregnancy. Joining forces with Boots UK to help mums-to-be give 'hormonal hay fever' the bump, she's realised that simple changes can work wonders when it comes to managing unwanted symptoms.

"I do feel that this year my symptoms have come along earlier than usual. To begin with I just assumed the stuffy nose and itchy eyes were another pregnancy symptom, I didn't realise that it was actually just my hay fever starting early."

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She adds:

"Normally I'd just use an over the counter medication (although as an athlete there are certain things you can and can't take), but I'm starting to realise that little things like not hanging your sheets in the garden because it attracts all the pollen can make a huge difference. With hay fever the trick is to catch symptoms early and try and prevent it. Other obvious things like wearing sunglasses when you're out and about to keep the pollen from your eyes can also be so helpful!"

3. Exercise doesn't have to take a back seat…

Despite the old-fashioned myth that women shouldn't exercise during pregnancy being well and truly debunked, some mums-to-be are still worried that working out will harm their babies. However, Laura has maintained her athletic training throughout her pregnancy with only minor changes to her schedule.

"I've been cycling for pretty much my whole life so I've been trying to keep my training as normal as possible. I would say it's important to try and keep up with everything you would normally do, don't be scared of being pregnant."

She adds:

"So far I've kept everything up, but obviously not to the extent that I was before. Everything is now either in my garage or at the gym just because it's a lot more controllable. If I were to go out on the road on my bike and I begin to feel rubbish then I'm stuck with no way of getting back, whereas if I do an hour on the turbo and I've had enough then I'm already in the comfort of my own home."

4. …But make sure you know what you're doing

Although Laura is surrounded by a support team to ensure that she trains as safely as possible, it's easy to stay clued up on what you can and can't do in each stage of pregnancy. Indeed, you can read our own guide to pre and post-partum workouts here.

"My coach has been keeping an eye on me and giving me ideas and I've been working closely with everyone at British cycling just to make sure that everything is under control and nothing is super-intense. I didn't want to be scared of being pregnant; I wanted to really enjoy it and be able to carry on my life as normal, just tailoring certain things back."

Laura's also learning the importance of listening to her body as her baby grows.

"We capped everything at 90% to begin with because for the first three months you feel totally normal and I just wanted to carry on going and everyone was telling me that we're not chasing any numbers at the moment so it's OK to cap things. Now we're slowly decreasing the amount I do as my bump gets bigger and bigger."

5. Enjoy it!

Make sure you take some time to appreciate the amazing work your body is doing and give yourself some time to enjoy the 9 months leading up to labour with your friends and family.

"Jason is so excited, we both are! We've just started painting the nursery together and all those kind of things, it's just so nice. He's taken a bit of a step back from cycling as well for the time being just so we can enjoy this time together."

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